


Blind Date (Literally)

by Tearsaresalty



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blind Date, Dumb Jokes and Memes, First Meetings, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, M/M, but mainly bad jokes, there is some kissing too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-09
Updated: 2017-04-09
Packaged: 2018-10-17 00:08:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10582308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tearsaresalty/pseuds/Tearsaresalty
Summary: Although the Blind Cafe wasn't exactly an ideal place for a first date, Matsukawa's and Hanamaki's connection was undeniable from the very first moments of their acquaintance; right there, in that pitch-dark room, personalities flare, looks are discarded and a love story takes place.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Salutations! This is a long ride but I had so much fun writing it that I decided to share! 
> 
> Kind reminder that I don't have a beta, so go easy on me for the mistakes that might exist. Thanks.
> 
> Also, for those who don't know, The Blind Cafe is an organization that uses darkness (no blindfolds) in order to sort of, put people in a blind person's shoes. I've been to one exhibition a few years ago and it was rather eye-opening (pun intended) so I decided to turn this experience into a fic. Enjoy ^_^

"Mattsun. _Mattsun!_ Are you listening to me?"

Issei didn't even look up from his phone when he said, "Huh? No, sorry, I'm not fluent in..." He trailed off and blew a raspberry.

His best friend (one of the two at least), who didn't appreciate his creativeness, punched him on the shoulder. Hard. And that bastard Oikawa was fucking strong. "Mattsun!", he complained.

"Just leave me alone, Oikawa," Issei muttered, rubbing the abused spot, "Go bug Iwaizumi."

Speaking of the devil, Issei's second best friend was seated on his desk, typing furiously about a paper he had due in a few days. At Issei's words, the typing stopped. "Uh, please no," Iwaizumi said, "I've got work to do and I can't deal with _that_."

Of course Issei knew he had work to do; he lived with Iwaizumi in the same house, so he knew the man's schedule as well as he knew his -- maybe even better. Bad news were that actually lived with _both_ Iwaizumi and Oikawa. The worst suffering though wasn't the fact that Oikawa's saltiness was around him every day and all day long, it was also this tiny bitty bit of a fact that, yes, Iwaizumi and Oikawa _dated_ each other and, amongst other things, Issei was also very much surrounded by hearts and puppy (gross) romance.

Issei knew he was a hero; he just didn't have a cape.

Oikawa let out a long, suffering breath and shook his head in over-dramatic disapproval. The typical theatrics. "You both are so rude to me," he said, "I wonder why I'm hanging out with you guys."

"Friendly reminder that you're also _dating_ one of us," Issei added, switching from FaceBook to Tumblr for more memes. Tumblr had more memes, mind you. "Thankfully that _one_ is not me."

Iwaizumi sighed. "It's me, unfortunately."

Oikawa gave his boyfriend a dirty look. "Unfortunately?", he scoffed but sighed in defeat when Iwaizumi blew him a kiss. Issei made a gagging sound and scooted away; he didn't want any of that gross shit on him, thank you. Oikawa should have it all.

"Anyway," Oikawa continued without a care in the world, "Since you mentioned dating, that's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about."

"No, I ain't double dating with you two and a random chick you picked for me," Issei stated, sternly shaking his head, "Not since last time."

"Akira-chan wasn't that bad!"

"She got turned on by sniffing my _armpits_ ; now I'm kinky alright but that's some next level shit right there."

Oikawa pouted, admitting defeat for the second time that day. "Anyway, that's not what I had in mind."

"I am afraid you're going to tell me even though I don't want to listen, right?"

"Exactly!", his best friend chirped, flashing his million volt smile. "Listen Mattsun," he started, "You've been alone for so long and since I'm the bestest best friend you could ever have asked for-"

Issei couldn't stop the derisive snort that escaped him. He really couldn't. He also heard Iwaizumi join in, but lighter.

Oikawa, on the other hand, ignored them both and went on. "...I decided to introduce you to another single friend of mine! His name is Makki!"

"Hanamaki," Iwaizumi corrected, as if on cue, "Hanamaki Takahiro is his actual name."

" _Makki_ is more creative, Iwa-chan!"

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and kept on typing.

However, Issei's attention was caught in Oikawa's trap. "A dude?"

Oikawa didn't usually introduce him to dudes, as females were always flocking around him and thus he had much more access to them. The dudes were instead more attracted to Iwaizumi, something that made Oikawa extremely jealous, not because someone could snatch his _Iwa-chan_ away from him but because he didn't know why dudes didn't want him as much. A frivolous man, indeed.

"As far as I remember you're into dudes too, right?"

"Well, _duh_." Dudes were perfect; how couldn't he not be into them?

Oikawa smiled again. "Then there you have it; Makki is a great guy, I'm sure you'll like him." Then he added, chuckling, "And he doesn't get off by sniffing people's armpits, I'm sure of it."

"I'll be the fortunate or unfortunate judge of that," Issei said. But then he thought about it and shrugged, "Well, it seems that you like him enough; you gave him a dumb nickname and all."

Iwaizumi snorted. Oikawa shook his head, his expression turning salty. The usual. "He doesn't appreciate the nickname either but I can't remember the last time I had fucks on me to give."

"Point."

Oikawa scooted closer to him, wiggling his eyebrows. "Now tell me," he drawled, "Are you in for some blind dating?"

Issei perked up. "What? You ain't gon show me his face?"

"No no! Your personalities will be the ones to shine on that fated meeting, Mattsun!"

Oikawa's utterly pleased grin rang all the danger alarms in Issei's head. Iwaizumi gave him a sympathetic glance which made him even more nervous. Yet, knowing that there was literally no other way out of this, Issei shrugged. "Alright, let's do this," he said in the end, against his better judgement.

Issei was scared, he couldn't lie. But somehow his gut told him this time was going to be different. And Matsukawa Issei always trusted his gut.

~*~

Issei stood outside the place where the "fateful meeting", as Oikawa had called it _oh so_ _many_ times, was set to take place and couldn't stop the dread filling his stomach. Without taking his eyes away from the sign, he fished his phone out of his jeans and dialed Oikawa's number almost blindly.

It beeped two times until the familiar, obnoxiously sweet voice popped up. "Mattsun!", Oikawa chirped, "I see you've arrived at the place."

Issei noticed that it wasn't a question. That damn bastard had been expecting this to happen. Issei gritted his teeth together, annoyed. "When you said blind date, the options I had in my head didn't exactly include _this_."

Oikawa clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "But how could it be a blind date if either of you could _see_ , Mattsun!"

Issei pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled. Slowly. He wasn't giving Oikawa the satisfaction of making him angry. "Oikawa, this is the Blind Cafe."

"Your point being?"

"I don't know, maybe that I, uh, _won't be able to see his damn face_?"

"I still can't _see_ your point, Mattsun."

"This is not time to show off the puns I taught you!"

Oikawa simply laughed at him from the other end, aggravating him further. Goddamn it. "Oikawa, if this is a prank and Hanamaki is some weirdo or some shit-"

"It's not a prank," Oikawa interrupted him, suddenly dead serious. Issei knew him long enough to tell apart the joking from the serious tone and Oikawa wasn't faking it this time. "Makki is a very good guy who I appreciate a lot." A sigh, "You know what, Mattsun, you're right, this was too much; you can just go home, I'll call him and say the date is cancelled. It's a shame because I was sure you two were good for each other-"

"Okay, stop," Issei sighed after a moment of silence, "I'll go in."

The smile was back in Oikawa's voice. "Have fun!", he chirped, "Although I'm sure you will!" And with that, he hung up.

Issei put his phone back in his pocket. Somehow he felt as if he had just been played by Oikawa, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Eh, it wouldn't have been the first time anyway, so who cared? With a defeated sigh, he glanced down at his fine outfit, his dusty pink shirt and grey jeans, thinking back to the hours he spent picking it out to make a good impression. _What impression?_ , he thought, _The dude isn't gonna be able to see me._

The good thing was that, if the date went horribly wrong, Issei could just sneak out without being seen. Literally.

Taking one last deep breath, Issei walked his way in the Blind Cafe establishment. He said Oikawa's name at the reception and the dude redirected him towards a velvety blue curtain, behind which, another dude - a blind dude - stood there waiting for him. _Blind Dude_ instructed Issei to put a hand on his shoulder for aid and, guided by Blind Dude, Issei's world was enveloped by darkness. Pitch black, no kidding. It was rather unsettling the first few seconds, claustrophobic even but Issei managed to calm down his nerves by thinking about the series he was going to binge-watch after this horrible thing was over.

His guide came into an abrupt halt and Issei almost bumped into him in his daze. "There's your table sir."

"Uh, thanks."

_There's my table my ass, I can't see shit_ , Issei thought to himself bitterly as he reached out and came in contact with a... chair? It sure did feel like a chair. Issei felt it up for a few more seconds, just to make sure it's a chair indeed before he pulled it towards himself and carefully settled his butt on it.

Then, someone cleared their throat and Issei jumped out of his damn skin with an almost shriek.

"Um," a sweet, deep but very smooth masculine voice drawled out hesitantly, "That went well. Didn't mean to scare you, sorry."

The dude must have been seated right opposite from Issei, unless his newly hightened hearing sense was still disoriented. So he turned his body accordingly. "Yeah, I guess you can say _I didn't see you there_ and you caught me off guard."

Moments of silence ticked by right after Issei had spoken, which of course gave him the chance to realize what had just come out of his damn mouth. Great. Amazing. Hanamaki's first impression of him would be "The dude with the lame jokes" right off the bat. Cool.

Issei heard him take a small breath and he prepared himself. "Did you just...", was all Hanamaki said before trailing off.

"Yeah, I made a pun," Issei explain, slightly embarrassed, "I do tend to make many and terrible ones, especially when I'm nervous. Sorry."

There was another second of dead silence before Hanamaki, to Issei's uttermost and very pleasant surprise, just burst out laughing. His laugh was genuine, hearty and unrestrained and it may have made Issei's heart beat a little faster - no one had to know. Instead, he joined Hanamaki with a chuckle or two.

_Phew_.

"Man," Hanamaki gasped between chuckles, "Why are you sorry? Puns are amazing."

"Finally! Someone understands," Issei huffed in exaggerrated relief, "I am Matsukawa Issei by the way."

"Hanamaki Takahiro," the other retorted, "I'd offer a handshake but I fear I'll gauge someone's eye out and I'm a bit squeamish with blood."

"Does it matter? You won't be able to see it anyway."

"...Good point," Hanamaki agreed thoughtfully. Then he laughed, "You know what, I like your sass."

Issei felt himself smile. "Thanks," he said, "It's part of my charm. And since we are complimenting each other, I gotta say that you got a really nice voice."

"Thanks. Right back at you."

At that point, Blind Dude popped out of nowhere, scaring the shit out of both of them, if Hanamaki's low cuss was any indication. He apologized for it, asking for their order. Since they couldn't see the menu, both of them ordered tea. Issei was pleased to find out that Hanamaki liked the spicy teas, just like him but he didn't comment on it. He was a bit apprehensive about what he should say. Well, at least he knew that dumb jokes were appreciated here, which was a relief, but he wasn't planning on abusing them the whole time. They had to find some other things to talk about.

Issei's thinking time came to an end when the waiter left. "So," he started hesitantly, "This was Oikawa's bright idea, huh."

"Bright?", Hanamaki questioned, sounding confused, "What is bright about this? There's literally not an ounce of light in this place."

It took Issei several seconds to digest what he had just heard before he snorted, "I hate you."

"You're not the only one who can make bad jokes."

"I am glad to know that," Issei said and he meant it. "So," he started again, "Did Oikawa talk your ears off about this date or it was just me?"

He heard Hanamaki chuckle. "Ah, no. With me it went kinda like this; we were talking with Oikawa over drinks and he asked me if I had a significant other, to which I said no and then added, against my better judgement, that I kind of want one too? And then Oikawa, being Oikawa, went on a rant about his roommate who is also single and ready to mingle and I thought, why the heck not." A sigh followed. "This, was not what I had in mind though, I'm not going to lie. Oikawa is so bizzare sometimes and you can't really reason with him either, even if you try."

At that, Issei barked a laugh. "Tell me about it," he said, "I _live_ with the dude."

"That bad?"

"He puts honey...in his coffee."

"Damn."

Issei nodded to no one in particular. "Now, everyone is allowed to like whatever they want, but that's just so odd to me."

Hanamaki laughed. Issei congratulated himself. "Have you ever tried it though?"

"Accidentally," Issei explained, "Oikawa _also_ steals my mug and leaves it around the apartment so one time, I thought it was my coffee and took a sip, realized it too late."

"Oh man, that must have been nasty, no?"

"Hm, no? But it was odd. The idiot puts too much honey in his coffee."

"I swear, you and Iwaizumi are heroes."

Issei put his elbows on the table and scooted closer to whatever direction he thought Hanamaki was at. "Now listen; I'm the only hero in this household," he said sternly, "Because I have the honor of living with these two love-sick idiots and you have no idea how mushy Iwaizumi can get at times or how loud they both get during specific activities, be it arguing or sex."

Hanamaki was outright laughing and Issei couldn't bring himself to stop smiling as he continued. "Now don't get me wrong; I am glad they are so happy together because I love them and they deserve it, but Iwaizumi _moaning_ at four in the morning is something I would have liked to live without knowing the sound of."

"I agree with you," Hanamaki said, "Listening to your friends do the do is kinda weird."

"Sometimes I have to spend the night at a friend's because they sexile me."

"Aw."

Issei bit his lip, suddenly realizing that he had gone off on a tangent about stuff that might not interest Hanamaki. "Um, sorry," he muttered, "Didn't mean to rant."

"No, my man," Hanamaki assured him, "Rant all you want; entrust your salt on me. It's what I thrive on. Why do you think I'm such good friends with Oikawa?"

"Don't tell me you're the reason Oikawa's salt levels have dropped the past few months."

"Mhm." There was a smug smile in Hanamaki's voice. "He calls me, hates the world, I hate the world with him and then we're both better."

"That's some good ass therapy."

"A cheap one too."

At that point, there were interrupted by the waiter who had just returned with their drinks but the conversation picked up right where it had left off as soon as the waiter was gone. Although he had yet to see Hanamaki's face, Issei couldn't bring himself to care anymore. Yes, he was indeed _extremely_ curious to know what the other man looked like but their connection, their chemistry was so incredible and it was the first time Issei was experiencing such thing, so there was no way he was letting something trivial such as looks to get in the way. Issei liked him already and from the looks of it, the feeling was mutual.

They talked about everything and nothing and it was so damn easy, as if they had known each other for years. Issei found out that Hanamaki was a baker with an undeniable weakness to profiteroles, he was twenty seven years old and lived alone in an apartment a few blocks away from this place. He liked horror movies and memes - Issei might have fallen for him a little for the latter.

When Issei asked him how he got to know Oikawa, Hanamaki told him that he often practiced volleyball with the nerd in the same gymnasium, which of course lead to a heated conversation about volleyball because, _holy shit Hanamaki, I love volleyball too._ They agreed to drag Iwaizumi and Oikawa one day for a two-on-two.

"Have you ever received Oikawa's serves before?", Issei asked.

Hanamaki hummed. "No, not really. He usually sets to me," he said, "But I've seen him serve; I stopped breathing."

Issei grinned. "Same. I've had bruises on me for weeks after I received that shit."

"You actually managed to _receive_ it?"

"A bunch of times. The more you practice the easier it gets. It still hurts though; the fucker is so strong."

Hanamaki sounded impressed. "Damn."

"Don't tell him I said a good thing about him though. He won't let me live it down."

"Alright," Hanamaki laughed.

"Anyway," Issei wrapped the conversation up. He glanced around aimlessly (since he could see nothing anyway) and suddenly something dawned on him. "Dude," he said, "How long have we been here?"

He heard Hanamaki shift, his leg knocking against Issei's accidentally under the table. "I have no idea; they forced me to leave my phone upstairs in a locker and I don't wear a watch," Hanamaki said.

"I didn't realize how time went by."

"It's because it was fun," Hanamaki stated earnestly, but he quickly sputtered nervously, "I mean, I was having fun, I don't wanna speak for you or anything-"

Issei bit his lower lip, amused. _Oh, so he gets flustered too? Adorable_. "Don't worry, I have fun too."

A sigh of relief, "Phew."

"So," Issei added, "Wanna get out of here? I know a good pizza place around here."

"Sure, why not?"

Issei grinned to himself. The eagerness to know what Hanamaki looked like had returned, even though he was nervous as shit at the same time. See, although Issei wasn't one to judge people by their looks, he couldn't deny that looks didn't matter to him at all. What if, though, Hanamaki didn't find him attractive in the first place? Issei liked to think of himself as, at least, good-looking since he was tall as shit and well-built (his hair was always messy but that was charming in its own way sometimes and for some people) so he would be completely bummed if he wasn't Hanamaki's type.

He tried, however, not to let these thoughts plague his mind too much, as they both stood up from their table. "Uh," Hanamaki hesitated, "Would you mind waiting for me outside? My kidneys worked their magic and now, instead of tea, I got _pee_."

How anticlimatic. What a horrible rhyme. I love it. Issei touched his forehead, pretending as if he wasn't laughing. "Sure thing."

They parted their ways, Issei heading to the front desk briskly. He winced as soon as his eyes came in contact with the light after such long while they stayed adjusted to the dark, and it sure did take him some time to get used to it again. He also paid for their table, thanking them for the experience with a fixed smile and he stepped out of the cafe. There, he proceeded to panic every time someone appeared within his line of vision. The time had come, damn it. It was time to see the face of the man with whom he connected so much. And he was promptly shitting himself; what if they didn't get along with the lights on? What if things turned awkward? Sure, the absence of light had been a booster in breaking the ice and keeping the conversation flowing, so now what?

Issei's raging thoughts came to an abrupt halt as soon as he eyes fell on the wonderful creature stepping out of the cafe he had been in not so long ago. The creature - a tall man in his late twenties - wore black skinny jeans, a plain white tee, topped by a navy blue, unbuttoned and oversized shirt, he had light brown, short-cropped hair and a bored expression on his face. Said expression however changed as soon as his eyes locked with Issei's, shifting to something that could be described as...intrigue? Issei's heart rate skyrocketed. He hadn't seen anyone as beautiful before in his life.

_Please be Hanamaki, please be Hanamaki, please be Hanamaki--_

"Matsukawa?", the creature said in that sweet baritone Issei had already engraved in his memory as Hanamaki.

Issei struggled to breathe. He forced a small smile on. "S'me."

Hanamaki walked up to him, wearing a big grin. _Jesus_. "Good to finally _see_ you," he said but when Issei didn't react, he frowned. "Not good?"

"Gimme a sec," Issei exhaled harshly, pushing a hand through his hair. Damn, now he wished he had checked how presentable he looked. "I'm a blind man who sees the light for the first time."

Hanamaki's full lips twisted to a full-blown fake pout that fried all of Issei's brain cells. "Oh and here I thought I was too pretty and left you speechless," the man said.

"That's exactly it; I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to make a dumb joke."

"Oh." Hanamaki's cheeks turned a nice pink color as he averted his gaze. "Thanks...I guess?"

"I didn't know Oikawa had friends prettier than him," Issei added, unable to filter his own damn mouth, "I had always thought that if he had, he'd be saltier about it."

Hanamaki laughed bashfully, touching his now flaming face. "Okay, enough with the compliments, they make me blush."

Issei cracked a grin and swallowed his heart. "I thought it was clear that this was my purpose all along."

"Shut up, you're so lame."

"Alright."

They stared at each other for a few seconds before they started laughing, easily just like before. Issei was glad that there was no lingering awkwardness between them now that they weren't in the dark. He was also quite damn sure about one thing; he was in love with Hanamaki. He had felt the sparks flying back there when their looks didn't matter but now that he could see, Hanamaki smiling at him, all huge and toothy, was the absolute catalyst that set everything off.

He was absolutely _smitten_.

"So," Hanamaki started as soon as they recovered, "About that pizza?"

"Hm?"

"Can we go get it? I'm hungry."

"Oh, yeah," Issei nodded and they took off. "You know what?", he added.

"What?"

"I'd say a dumb joke about pizza but I think it'll be a bit cheesy."

Hanamaki stopped on his tracks and gave Issei the blankest of stares. Issei just grinned at him, as big as he could. Then Hanamaki sighed, deep and exhausted. "I hate you so much right now."

"That was the whole point."

"I'd give you a _pizza my mind,_ but it involves bad words and we're in public," Hanamaki retorted.

Issei's smile disappeared. He was so damn conflicted; half of him got all flustered inside about the fact that Hanamaki was so damn witty with his mouth, the other half of him wanted to strangle the little sass master. "Curse all you want," Issei said, "Unlike pizza, my pizza jokes cannot be topped."

Hanamaki face-palmed and made an angry sound. "Shut up or I'll fight you."

Issei spread his arms wide, keeping his face as straight as possible. "Come at me, bro."

"Oh hell, no; we are not using memes."

"I am using all the _memes_ possible."

Hanamaki grunted in frustration. He pushed both hands in his hair and took a deep breath. "Goddamn it," he exhaled. "Goddamn it, you're good."

"So I've been told," Issei agreed smugly, earning himself a nasty glare. He laughed it off of course, no offense taken and he patted Hanamaki on the back. "C'mon, let's go get some pizza, with lots of topings and without puns."

"You're lucky you're so cute," Hanamaki said, defeated, "Otherwise my salty ass would have dumped you right now."

"Lucky me!"

"I'm paying for the pizza though," Hanamaki added.

Issei shook his head. "Nah, it's on me."

"The tea was on you," Hanamaki retorted, "The food is on me."

"Alright, I guess that's fair."

Then after, actual conversation took the place of the dumb puns (of course they both made some on the way but their amount had significantly declined). Issei noticed that Hanamaki was much more vibrant than what he had initially thought in the dark room; he used his hands while talking, and despite the fact that his expression didn't change much, his voice was expressive enough to make up for it all. Also, he never ran out of things to talk about; even when they had sat on their booth, munching down greasy pizza and humming in appreciation, Hanamaki kept the conversation going like it was a second nature to him. He was so damn charming. And Issei was so totally smitten. Hanamaki's little smiles, his snarky laughs, the way he scrunched his nose when Issei brought up the "pineapple on pizza" debate - all of them had stolen his heart completely.

He hadn't even realized that time had gone by until he glanced at his phone screen and 10:43pm glared back at him. "Holy shit," he exclaimed, eyes widening, "It's almost eleven."

"What the hell," Hanamaki sighed in disbelief, pressing the home button of his phone to see the time. Then, he proceeded to gasp. "Damn, I talk a lot."

"No no no no no," Issei rushed to correct him, "You talk the right amount, please don't stop talking. Unless you're tired and you wanna go home of course."

Hanamaki shook his head. "Nah, not really."

"Then we can just...stay?", Issei said, way too hopeful.

"Hm," Hanamaki hummed. He ponderd on it for a few seconds before he said, "How about we go to a park and check out the stars?"

_Count me the fuck in_ , Issei thought to himself, _I might actually try and kiss him while we are at it._

"Sure, let's go."

They left soon after that. Issei let Hanamaki lead the way, since he was apparently more familiar with the neighborhood, paying half a mind to the full-blown educational course on the best locations for stargazing in their area. Why half? Because most of his attention was drawn to the fact that they were walking close to each other and also, the fact that Hanamaki's hand was within Issei's reach, so the sudden urge to hold it in his had overwhelmed him. Issei reached out carefully, bumping the back of his hand against Hanamaki's, seeking out the pinky with his, until Hanamaki finally got the message and linked their fingers together.

When Issei looked up, Hanamaki was grinning at him. "You could have just asked you know."

Issei shook his head. "I didn't want to interrupt you."

Hanamaki chuckled. "I have literally haven't stopped talking all evening; I could make a pause just once."

"Like I said from the very first moment of out acquaintance, I really like your voice so there was no chance I'd stop you."

Red found its way in Hanamaki's cheeks once again, and despite the lack of sunlight, Issei's eyes were accustomed to the dark enough to see it. He mentally congratulated himself too.

"Aren't you a smooth one," Hanamaki muttered.

"Not as smooth as your skin."

"...Goddamn it, Matsukawa."

Issei grinned in triumph while Hanamaki just shook his head in disbelief.

Moments later, they arrived at the park Hanamaki had been talking about. They walked around for a while to find this specific point Hanamaki kept telling him about because _how else are we supposed to see the stars Matsukawa?_ Issei couldn't really bring himself to argue, so he just let himself be dragged around by the cutest nerd he had met in his life. All Issei saw was a win-win situation.

When they finally sat on one of the benches, Hanamaki didn't lose a beat throwing Issei's arm over his shoulders and dropping his head on Issei's shoulder in return. Issei held his breath in from the shock and he blinked down at a pair of big doe eyes staring at him avidly. "You don't mind, do you?", Hanamaki asked, despite the fact that he already knew the answer.

Issei sighed in defeat and wrapped his other arm around Hanamaki's middle, pulling him closer. He was too damn weak already. Hanamaki was so warm and he smelled so nice - like cotton candy and powdered sugar for God's sake. How could Issei ever say no to him? "Of course not," he said, "Why would I mind?"

They didn't speak for a while after that. Although Issei had grown used to listening to Hanamaki's voice, he couldn't say that he didn't appreciate the silence either. It wasn't awkward, not at all. It was just them two enjoying each other's company under a sky full of stars...which were not very visible because apparently it was kinda cloudy. Neither of them cared about the stars anymore though.

At some point, Hanamaki's long, elegant fingers started tracing meaningless figures on Issei's chest and belly. Maybe the man was doing it without realizing it but it had Issei at the edge of his seat nevertheless. Because it felt nice; too nice. Because Issei was literally burning with the desire to kiss him and Hanamaki wasn't doing anything right to kill down that fire.

"Hey," Hanamaki murmured, voice soft, "I had fun today."

"Same," Issei agreed as eloquently as his complicated state allowed him too.

But Hanamaki wasn't done just then. "I haven't felt such chemistry with anyone for a while, if not ever before in my life," he said, "I'm really glad you agreed on meeting me."

"I can't believe I'm saying this but I am glad Oikawa was being his usual annoying self. Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered; the previous dates he set me up with were a disaster."

Hanamaki chuckled airily. "So...would it be alright for me to assume that you also had fun?"

"What do you think?", Issei questioned sarcastically, "That I'd be here _snuggling_ with you if I didn't? I value my personal space, thanks." When Hanamaki didn't say anything else, Issei let out a big suffering breath and added, "I've also been kinda _dying_ to kiss you for a while now too. Just so you know."

Hanamaki's head popped up from his chest almost immediately. His eyes were big and round when he said, "Holy shit, that's what I've been trying to convey all along."

Issei sucked his teeth. "Well, since we are done conveying, how about we start doing it too?"

"Shit, _yes_."

Before Issei had any chance to mentally prepare himself for what was about to come, Hanamaki had already cupped his face with both hands and he was kissing him square on the mouth. Issei held him close, breathing him in and responding to the kiss just as feverently until Hanamaki made a soft sound and slid his fingers in Issei's hair. Issei pulled back momentarily and their eyes locked before he went for Hanamaki's lower lip. He gently pulled it between his, relishing its softness, then he gave it a playful nip which had Hanamaki giggle and pull further away.

Issei was this close to complaining for the lack of contact when Hanamaki swooped right into his lap without one care in the world and titled Issei's head backwards before re-connecting their lips. Hanamaki apparently liked control; Issei liked to give away control, as he was lazy as heck. So Issei sat back and allowed himself to be devoured. At some point, Hanamaki indulged his tongue in the intimate play and although he tasted like pizza, Issei's heart still skipped a few beats.

They made out for what could be described as a while. In fact, Issei went far enough to lift Hanamaki's shirt and caress his broad back all he wanted, tickling Hanamaki lightly on the ribs until the man squirmed in his embrace. He got his tongue bit as a retaliation, but that was fine. It gave him the opportunity to go for Hanamaki's neck and bless it with kisses and nips until Hanamaki moaned Issei's name quite loudly. Blood rushed to Issei's face, as well as his loin.

"H-Hey," Hanamaki whispered, gently prying Issei away from his neck. He was breathing heavily, much to Issei's satisfaction. "As much as I enjoy this we gotta stop; it's getting out of hand."

Albeit dazed, Issei still had the energy for a stupid joke. He clasped Hanamaki's waist and said, "You're not getting out of my hand, you're still right in it."

Hanamaki rolled his eyes but laughed nonetheless. "Shut up, dork, you know what I mean."

Issei knew. He was getting a bit too hot under the collar -- of course he knew. "You're right; as much as I love this, I don't want to get arrested for public indecency...again."

As expected, Hanamaki quirked a questioning eyebrow. "Again?"

"Shh."

"Am I dating a criminal?"

Dating... Issei couldn't help but smile goofily at the sound of that. He tightened his arms around Hanamaki's middle and pulled him closer before saying, "Not only you're dating one; you're also about to kiss him again." To enhance his point, he made a kissy face.

Hanamaki snorted at his antics and squished Issei's cheeks, indeed kissing him again. Then he pried himself out of Issei's grip and stood on his feet. Issei pouted. Hanamaki shook his head, "Don't pout, we gotta get home. It's late."

"Aight, I'll walk you."

"No you won't, I live nearby."

"Yes I will," Issei insisted upon standing up, "What kind of a boyfriend am I if I let you walk on your own? Plus, I am waiting for my goodnight kiss."

"I knew you had ulterior motives," Hanamaki snorted.

Issei cackled and kissed Hanamaki's temple. "At least I'm honest about it."

He laughed when Hanamaki rolled his eyes at him as they took off. Their fingers also found a way to lace with each other as they walked quietly in the dead of the night towards Hanamaki's apartment. Issei's head was buzzing from the aftermath of their kiss(es) but it was quiet; his usually livid thoughts were finally silenced and all of them revolved around the man walking next to him in silence. He gazed at Hanamaki, he took in his perfectly shaped jaw, his sharp cheek bones and straight nose, his half-mast eyes and his kiss-swollen lips and thought to himself, _Man, I'll thank Oikawa forever for this._

Thrown off by how his thoughts suddenly drifted to his annoying best friend, Issei shook his head and stared at the ground.

When Hanamaki came to a stop in front of a building and fished a pair of keys out of his pocket, Issei felt his heart constrict a little. Despite the fact the had just spent an entire afternoon _and_ evening with that man, he didn't want to part with him just yet. And judging by the expression on Hanamaki's face, the feeling was mutual.

"So," Hanamaki began, "I guess it's time to retrieve the prize for which you came all the way here for."

Chuckling, Issei stepped closer and brought their lips together in a short, sweet kiss. It still left him breatheless though.

They exchanged numbers after that. Hanamaki put the smirking emoji after Issei's name, claiming that it was the face Issei kept making when he cracked a dumb joke. Issei accepted the emoji without any complaints.

"So," Hanamaki said again, "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Please do so."

"G'night."

"Night."

With another short kiss, Hanamaki finally walked towards his apartment building's door. Issei followed him with is eyes, thinking that he would wait until Hanamaki was inside before he would leave, when suddenly Hanamaki turned to face him again. He looked conflicted and more than a little nervous.

"What's wrong?", Issei asked.

Hanamaki pushed a hand through his hair. "Don't get this the wrong way," he started, "But would you like to stay over? I mean, I feel kinda bad that you have to go all the way back alone, and it's so late too, so I thought-"

"Yes of course I wanna stay over, please let me stay over, yes, I'll be in your care, thanks," Issei blurted without much sense. He walked up to Hanamaki, staring at him expectantly and Hanamaki simply shook his head, muttering something about a dog.

Once in the apartment, it didn't take them too long to get comfortable again. It didn't take too long for the clothes to fly off either. Hanamaki had been sweet enough to ask him if it was alright to top and Issei leaned back on the pillows and smirked. "I'm not like my pizza jokes; you can top me anytime."

Hanamaki pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed deeply. "This was my decision, as a consenting adult," he said to no one in particular, before making a mess out of Issei.

~*~

The next morning, Issei woke up to the delicious scent of coffee and pancakes. Then he noticed that Hanamaki was nowhere near where he should have been, aka next to him on the bed. However, Issei couldn't bring himself to be too mad about it because he was going to have said boyfriend cook him pancakes for breakfast. Everything was better with pancakes.

He got out of bed carefully, his hips reminding him of the events last night mercilessly as he stumbled his way to Hanamaki's bathroom. He needed a shower. And Hanamaki, but mainly a shower. If he wanted to hug and kiss Hanamaki good morning, he had to be at least presentable.

A glimse of his reflection on the mirror had him grinning. He looked absolutely mawled; judging from the love bites around his neck, as well as the finger marks on his hips, Hanamaki hadn't held back on him at all. Good.

Issei borrowed some of Hanamaki's clothes as he step out of the shower. He had a moment while putting them on, as Hanamaki's scent overwhelmed him but he shook it off and headed for the real deal, who was in the kitchen, wearing only a pair of tight black boxers and pouring coffee in a mug while talking quite avidly with someone on the phone.

"Oikawa, quit screeching," Hanamaki scolded in a hushed voice. His eyebrows marred over his nose, "Of course he's alright; he spent the night here." A pause. Hanamaki rolled his eyes. "Well, we were too busy to give you a call, can you stop complaining now?" A huff. "You're insufferable."

"Good morning," Issei greeted, making his presence known.

Hanamaki's face lit up immediately and Issei walked up to him, kissing him gently on the lips. "Yeah, he's awake now, you heard him right," Hanamaki said to Oikawa on the phone, still grinning at Issei, "And yes what you heard just now was us kissing -- don't _ew_ me, prick."

Issei snorted a laugh and made a beckoning motion with his hand as he said, "Gimme the phone."

"He wants to talk to you, stop whining," Hanamaki scoffed at his phone, passing it to Issei.

Issei adjusted it on his ear and purposely kissed Hanamaki on the lips again, loud enough to hear Oikawa's gag of disgust from the other end. "Hey, Oikawa," he drawled as soon as they parted.

"Mattsun!", the other huffed, "I am so glad to hear your voice, you know? Me and Iwa-chan had been worried sick when you didn't come back or call last night! I swear to God, you're a horrible friend."

"I know, I'm sorry," Issei said earnestly, eyeing Hanamaki's ass as the man had turned around to pour Issei a cup of coffee too, "But I had my hands full of the incredible date you set me up for yesterday, so I couldn't call and all... Forgive me."

_That_ , seemed to shut Oikawa up for a few seconds. Then a chuckle followed. "You're much nicer when you get laid, Mattsun."

"So are you."

A scoff. "I'm always nice."

Hanamaki leaned on the counter and winked at him invitingly. Issei's neck heated up immediately. "Listen, Oikawa," he said absently, reaching out to trace Hanamaki's protruding collar bone, "I'll get you, like, a ton of milk bread for this, okay? Just...whine to me later."

There was a short pause before an earnest laugh made its way to Issei's ear. He fleetingly noticed it though, because Hanamaki had wrapped one of his legs around Issei's waist and was at the proceed of pushing their bodies closer together.

What was a train of thought? All Issei had was a train _wreck_.

"Have fun, love birds," Oikawa said in the end.

"Thanks," was all Issei said before ending the call. He placed the cell phone carefully on the counter, giving Hanamaki his full attention. "Well?"

"You realize you gotta make it up to him with that milk bread right? He'll rememeber it forever," Hanamaki said.

Issei kissed him, long and deep, until Hanamaki was breathless. "We will talk about this later," he whispered, not trusting his voice. "Now I have to devour something sweet and delicious."

Hanamaki raised an eyebrow. "You mean the pancakes?"

"Oh, you wanna be a pancake?", Issei questioned. Then he cracked a grin and added, "Then, I'll be the butter that melts all over you."

When Hanamaki busted out laughing, Issei's stomach filled with butterflies. He made a mental promise to make Hanamaki laugh like this more and more often and from then on, he was a man of mission.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading! Comments are always very much appreciated ^_^


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